Ohio State vs. Alabama in Orlando? It's a possibility

Both Orlando bowls could feature great matchups this year, with a bunch of strong teams in SEC and Big Ten

It's not out of the question that Ohio State's Terrelle… (Tom Olmscheid, Associated…)

November 10, 2010|By Matt Murschel, ORLANDO SENTINEL

Spending New Year's Day with Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor and Alabama's Mark Ingram might not be as far-fetched as it seems.

Ohio State and Alabama are one of the possible matchup fans could see at the Florida Citrus Bowl.

The Capital One bowl, which features teams from the Big Ten and SEC, could be the best bowl game not in the Bowl Championship Series. The bowl gets first pick from teams from both conferences not in the BCS mix.

"The choices in the SEC and the Big Ten just appear to be astounding for this year. I think that Orlando is going to have a phenomenal game if not the best game in the country again in terms of quality teams," said Steve Hogan, Florida Citrus Sports executive officer. "You've got a chance to get a couple of at least maybe 10-wins teams if not maybe an 11-win team in there to play each other."

In the Big Ten, three teams sit atop the standings with one loss apiece — Michigan State, Ohio State, and Wisconsin — and Iowa with two losses. While one of these teams will most likely head to the Rose Bowl, the league's second-best team could land here in Orlando on New Year's Day.

"To think you could have Michigan State, Wisconsin, Ohio State or Iowa right now be potentially at 10-or-11 wins available for us to pick is exciting," Hogan reiterated.

The SEC has an undefeated Auburn and a one-loss LSU, followed by Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi State with two losses. Florida and South Carolina have three losses. Either way, the representative from the SEC should be a powerhouse.

While not as attractive as Capital One, the Champs Sports Bowl should still present a great matchups.

With representatives from the Big East and ACC, the choice for this year's lineups isn't as cut and dry as the Capital One.

At this point, Pittsburgh would qualify for the Big East's spot in the BCS bowl games. That would leave Syracuse (6-3, 3-2), Louisville (5-4, 2-2), and West Virginia (5-3, 1-2) as possible choices for the Champs Sports Bowl.

"I am really hoping we get a Big East squad that finishes strong and gets to 9-3, to me that would be exciting," Hogan added about the struggling conference.

In the ACC, four teams could potentially wind up in Orlando. Virginia Tech (7-2, 5-0), Florida State (6-3, 4-2), Miami (6-3, 4-2), Maryland (6-3, 3-2), N.C. State (6-3,3-2) and North Carolina (6-3, 3-2) all are within reach. The conference winner lands in a BCS game but after that it's open season for the Champs.

If Notre Dame wins out, beating Utah, Army and USC, the Fighting Irish could be more attractive for the Champs Bowl instead of an 8-4 Big East team.